WRHS Boys Tennis prepares for tough stretch drive ahead

By John Orrell, sports@thelandmark.com

Thursday

May 24, 2018 at 12:01 AM

HOLDEN – It's hardly a secret in the world of central Mass. boys' tennis that there are the perennially elite teams that dominate year in and year out. A quick check will show that the likes of Shrewsbury, Algonquin, Westborough, Nashoba and St. John's High are always in the thick of things when it comes to Tournament success.

While the Wachusett Regional High team is seldom mentioned in the discussion of elite teams, that tide may be turning some for the Mountaineer boys who have engineered a 5-4 record with seven matches remaining following a 4-1 loss to visiting Shrewsbury on May 14. Just three victories are needed to qualify for post-season competition. The clear downside is that all but one match are against the aforementioned teams meaning no letting up for the green and white.

"I think we've been improving and I do think we've felt a good momentum for us," said veteran and highly-respected Head Coach Tony Brissette. "I thought that the kids have done really well in practice and it was beginning to show in our matches. I'm encouraged with that because we're facing the last half of the season and we have some really tough teams we'll be taking on.

"We have to take things one step at a time and the first thing is to win three more matches and then we'll worry about the playoffs."

"I think we've played well so far," added Senior Co-Captain Phil Baird, who along with fellow Co-Captain Max Gobi were victorious in doubles versus Shrewsbury and are 7-1 as a duo. "We had some tough matches against some of the top teams in the District. It's been a good year. It's been fun."

Brissette has been relying upon singles players Nate Maldonado, Conor Gallagher and Elliot Benoit in the one, two and three spots, respectively. Baird and Gobi are a solid pair in first doubles while second doubles has been shared between Etienne Emery-Le, Evan Mizerak and Will Brown. Expect to see this lineup employed consistently throughout the remainder of the regular season.

"For most of us, especially seniors, we know what's coming and we definitely have to stay focused," said Senior Co-Captain Maldonado of the team's needs going forward. "We're playing a lot of teams in a really tough time period. But we can learn from what we may have experienced in previous matches. It's a learning experience."

"We all need to be ready when we're called on because the lineup has been changing so everyone has to be ready," explained Gobi, who Brissette claims has the best serve in central Mass. "It's a team effort and everyone has to contribute. Everyone has to be on their game. We're definitely a confident group but we know that there are a lot of tough teams ahead that are going to challenge us but we feel like we can take anyone on."

One of Brissette's fundamental approaches to the game of tennis is conditioning and mental toughness. He, as other area coaches, believe that staying in shape is a springboard to being capable of sustaining energy as some matches can be lengthy and a clear test of endurance. Players have been working hard on fitness training with lengthy sessions in the WRHS gym in a boot camp-like environment. Scaling the monstrous hill at WRHS that borders Hal Lane Field has been another frequent workout.

"We try to talk about mental toughness and conditioning," Brissette explained. "Attitude is big for this team this year and it's part of our slogan because it's important not just in sports but in life."